The American Cyclopædia (1879)/Beck, Karl

BECK, Karl, a German poet, born at Baja, Hungary, May 1, 1817. He is the son of a Jewish merchant, studied in Pesth, Vienna, and Leipsic, and has since 1848 chiefly resided in Vienna.

His first poems appeared in 1838 and 1839, and his reputation was established by his novel in verse, Janko, der ungarische Rosshirt (Leipsic, 1842). Among his principal succeeding works are: Lieder vom armen Mann (Berlin, 1846); Aus der Heimath (Dresden, 1852); Mater Dolorosa (Berlin, 1853); Jadwiga (Leipsic, 1863); and Elegieen (Vienna, 1869). He wrote a drama entitled Saul (Leipsic, 1841), not adapted for the stage. Many of his works, especially Janko, are remarkable for their delineation of Hungarian characteristics. A collection of his poems (Gesammelte Gedichte, Berlin, 1844) has passed through many editions.